Public Engagement

I strongly believe that as scientists it is our job not only to research, but to effectively communicate that research to the public. To that end, I actively engage in science communication / education on social media, and also engage with the public through museum outreach programs. I have also worked, and continue to work, with a number of different organizations dedicated to science education, and have also assisted in programs designed specifically for younger audiences and underrepresented communities. Details of these organizations and programs, as well as my role with them, are discussed below.

​Museum Outreach

Throughout my career I have been lucky enough to work in several natural history museums (Canadian Museum of Nature, Royal Ontario Museum, Field Museum of Natural History). Museums, and specifically their collections and specimen-based research programs, represent an outstanding venue in which to engage with the public and provide an effective medium for teaching about science and the natural world.

A few of the museum outreach programs I have taken part in are listed here:

Field Museum "Welcome Back SUE / SUE's World Opening Events" between December 15-21, 2018. Took part giving tours, answering questions from members of the press, representatives of visiting institutions, and visitors to the museum during a series of events focused around the opening of the 'SUE Experience / SUE's World' exhibit.

Field Museum 'A. Watson Armour Seminar Series' on December 5th, 2018. Gave a lecture on my research to the staff and public at the Field Museum, as part of their ongoing invitational speaker series. The title of my talk was "Multi-scale approaches to understanding dinosaur ecology and evolution – from growth and diet to whole faunas"

Field Museum 'EVOLVE Event' on September 22nd, 2018. Engaged with event guests, discussed my research at the museum and the upcoming 'Sue Experience' exhibit.

Field Museum 'Meet a Scientist' in the Science Hub on August 24th, 2018. Spoke with visitors, discussed Utah fieldwork, recent discoveries in palaeontology, and what is involved in being a palaeontologist.

Field Museum 'Adult Sleepover Event' on July 7th, 2018. Provided participants in museum evening & overnight event with guided tours of the 'Evolving Planet' permanent fossil galleries, as well as hands-on presentation of my research at the museum and the upcoming 'Sue Experience' exhibit.

Field Museum 'Member's Nights' on May 10th/11th, 2018. Provided guests with a behind-the-scenes look at the planned & under-construction 'SUE Experience' exhibit, with particular emphasis on the new scientific information / research informing our reconstructions of SUE the T. rex, how it grew, and the ecosystem it inhabited.

Field Museum 'Women's Board Family Day' on Feb 10th, 2018. I provided tours of the dinosaur collections to groups of 10-30 people, and engaged with visitors/donors during coffee/break periods.

Field Museum 'SUE's Moving on Up' event on January 11th, 2018. Discussed Late Cretaceous ecosystems, the species that inhabited them, and the planned 'SUE Experience' exhibit with museum members/donors.

'Dinosaurs Invade! Weekend' / 'Dinosaur Big Weekend' / 'Fossil Fest Family Fun Day' events at the Royal Ontario Museum, January 2015, 2016, and 2017. Gave public lectures including "Sorting out the world of dinosaurs: palaeoecology and palaeoenvironments in the Cretaceous of Alberta" and "ROM collections reveal a new dinosaur: Rativates evadens", and either gave tours or worked at hands-on tables describing vertebrate fossil microsites, theropods, and other topics to visitors.​

March Break program at the Royal Ontario Musuem, March 2014, 2015, and 2017. Gave public lecture titled "Fieldwork in Palaeontology". Worked at hands-on 'touch tables' interacting with museum visitors and teaching them about various fossil groups & their evolution/ecology.

'ROM Revealed' Open-house weekend at the Royal Ontario Museum, May 3-4, 2014. Assisted in leading guests on tours of the vertebrate palaeontology collections.

'Students on Ice – Carleton University Antarctic Expedition' lecture series at the Canadian Museum of Nature. Gave public lecture titled "Antarctica’s ecosystems through time: a change from terrestrial to fully marine".

'Meet the Experts' event at the Canadian Museum of Nature, November 2010 and 2011. Discussed the 'missing-link' fossil Puijila darwini, and my own research on pinniped evolution, with museum visitors.

'Rediscover Your Museum' re-opening event at the Canadian Museum of Nature, May 2010. Discussed Puijila darwini, and the pinniped land-to-sea transition with museum visitors, as well as answering questions regarding the newly renovated exhibition halls..

Science Borealis

Since February 2017 I have worked with Science Borealis, a Canadian non-profit organization dedicated to highlighting and disseminating Canadian scientific research & policy through blogs, events, and social media. My primary duties with Science Borealis are as a member of their Outreach Team, where I contribute to discussions of public engagement strategies, create social media an outreach content, and assist in running social media accounts. More information about Science Borealis can be found here.

Science Travels

In November 2012 I worked with Science Travels, an organization based out of the University of Ottawa that sends graduate students to provide elementary and high school students in remote or First Nations communities additional science education opportunities. I participated in four-person team sent to northern Ontario (within and between Dryden and Kenora), which visited multiple schools and First Nations communities and performed a series of science workshops/seminars. More information about Science Travels can be found here.

Geoheritage Day

'Explore Geoheritage Day' is an event organized by the Ottawa-Gatineau Geoheritage Project and the Carleton University Dept. of Earth Sciences, which takes place every October during National Science and Technology Week. The goals of the event are to increase awareness and education about the geological history of the National Capital Region. During the event, volunteers are sent to a variety of geoheritage landmarks in Ottawa and Gatineau, and make themselves available to interact with and educate the public about the natural history of those locations. Maps and descriptions of each site are also available during and before the event, allowing interested members of the public to seek out and learn about multiple sites. During my undergraduate and M.Sc., I worked with the organizers of Explore Geoheritage Day and interacted with the public at a number of different geoheritage sites. More information about this excellent event can be found here and here.